Banding And Branding With Newcastle Brown Ale

Yes, Dave got to hang with Aubrey. Gloat about it a little more, Dave.

Looking forward to Sunday’s big game? Well, I am. Deflated footballs or not, I want to see the Pats pull off a close victory.

But long before the game kicks off, our little agency has been immersed in Super Bowl advertising for many weeks. And for good reason. For the second year running, we’re working with Newcastle Brown Ale to help roll out an all-new creative campaign, and this one’s a can’t-miss.

Of course, this is the follow-up year after 2014’s “If We Made It,” a Cannes Lion award-winning campaign that showed how the brand would have advertised in the Big Game if it had the cash to do so. The runaway hit included a video starring Anna Kendrick, which pulled in well over 10 million views and tons of publicity for a fraction of the cost of an actual Big Game ad. How do you follow that up?

Really well, it turns out. This year, the brand enlisted Aubrey Plaza from “Parks and Recreation” to serve as a spokesperson, inviting other small (and financially challenged) brands to crowdfund an ad that worked for everybody. The campaign is called the “Band of Brands,” and it’s consolidated marketing at its absolute best.

Newcastle kicked off the campaign with a video called “Chores,” an attempt to rip off a certain snack chip brand’s annual campaign.

After the “failure” of that “attempt,” enter Aubrey. Ms. Plaza fronted two new videos – the first, titled “Call for Brands,” encouraged interested brands to join the effort…

The video was a big success. More than 350 brands “applied” to take part in the ad, and Newcastle narrowed it down to 37 – yes, 37 brands represented in the final creative. But, before we get too far, Aubrey starred in one more video – my personal favorite of the entire series – teasing the eventual “Band of Brands” ad. Take a look and be sure to watch (and listen) all the way to the end.

After all that, Newcastle created the “Band of Brands” ad, miraculously cramming all 37 brands into a clever 60-second spot. And yes, this ad WILL air in broadcast during the Big Game. In Palm Springs. Because Newcastle and its marketing cohorts still don’t have the $4.5 million it takes for a national buy.

The “Band of Brands” program was created by Newcastle in partnership with Droga5, Fast Horse and MediaVest, as part of Newcastle’s long-running “No Bollocks” campaign.